Turtle 2 Raytracer for Maya Released

Illuminate Labs has announced that it is shipping the next generation of its raytracer – Turtle 2. Turtle 2 is based on the second generation LiquidLight rendering technology, which provides the user with rendering performance while allowing ease of use, according to the company. With Turtle, users can open and render large scenes with advanced lighting effects. Turtle is integrated in the Maya GUI and uses native Maya shading networks. Direct compatibility with, for example, ZBrush and Shake also allows for a convenient workflow. "The response from the customers we have worked with in developing Turtle 2’s extended feature set and improved rendering speed has been extremely positive," says Nils Wirell, product manager for Turtle. Nintendo, Electronic Arts, Lockheed Martin and others have used Turtle since 2003. "We have been very pleased with the rendering speed and visual results of Turtle 2, and are using it in the lighting pipeline for our next Harry Potter game," says Michael Talarico, CG Supervisor for the Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire game at Electronic Arts.